Working Big

I decided to try a bigger painting yesterday: almost a full sheet, 18×30 inches. With this scale I could use big flat brushes for the background wash and really stand back and use my arm, resulting in more interesting brushwork overall. I kept a spray bottle handy and just kept on wetting the paper as needed until I got the whole background blocked in. It helped that it was a wet, humid day. Usually watercolor washes dry lightning-fast here in Colorado. Then I got out my trusty hair dryer so that I could start on the foreground, and promptly blew a fuse.